Abstract

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Stroke incidence continues to rise exponentially with age even as temporal trends in some population risk factors increase and others decline. In general, older patients with stroke have worse outcomes compared to their younger counterparts. Stroke severity, concurrent medical problems, prestroke disability, and less-aggressive acute and chronic management are a few contributing factors to account for this poor prognosis. Acute thrombolysis therapy is the only proven treatment in acute ischemic stroke. However, elderly patients have mostly been excluded from acute revascularization studies, due predominantly to their overall poor prognosis and the fear of hemorrhagic complications from these treatments. Despite this, there is no evidence to suggest that the risk benefit ratio of thrombolysis treatment is substantially different in the elderly than in younger ischemic stroke patients.
SUMMARY OF REVIEW
In this review, we briefly examine the stroke risk factor profile and outcome in the elderly and review the current evidence regarding intravenous and intra-arterial revascularization treatments.
CONCLUSION
We feel that carefully selected patients who meet eligibility criteria for thrombolysis should not be denied this therapy on the basis of age alone.

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Publisher Full Text

Authors

Asdaghi N, Butcher KS, Hill MD

Institution

Department of Clinical Neurosciences and the Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.

Source

International journal of stroke : official journal of the International Stroke Society 7:2 2012 Feb pg 142-9

MeSH

Age Factors
Aged
Cerebral Hemorrhage
Endovascular Procedures
Fibrinolytic Agents
Humans
Risk Factors
Streptokinase
Stroke
Thrombolytic Therapy
Tissue Plasminogen Activator
Treatment Outcome
Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator
Vascular Diseases

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article
Review

Language

eng

PubMed ID

22264367